Monday, April 05, 2010

Miscarriage of Justice against Matthias

Updated/Final, Sat 10 March: Matthias ends hunger strike after plea by Dr Mahathir, read h e r e


Original Article

If a judge feels that a litigant or an accused person has been in contempt of his court, then the judge should get a third party, and another court to determine whether indeed there is a case for contempt or not and to determine the punishment.- Dr Mahathir

Read more here.

You may not agree with the former PM because you think he shouldn't have taken action against a Lord President. And you may not agree with Matthias Chang because he supports his boss in the sacking of that Lord President. But that's not the issue here. The issue is: Was Matthias Chang really in contempt of court? Was there injustice against this lawyer?

Because Matthias refused to pay the RM20k fine and opted for jail instead, we have a situation where the judge's conduct is now under the limelight. For the judge's own integrity, and the credibility of the whole system, the Chief of Justice should call for an Inquiry or a review.

By the way, ours is the 9th least corrupted judiciary in the world. Let's keep it that way.

Matthias vs Judge Dredd? Read here.

43 comments:

  1. Dato', Matthias Chang did not support the sacking of Salleh Abbas so says his cousin Stephen Chang excerpt in Malaysiakini "It is on record and public knowledge that Matthias opposed Mahathir's interference in the judiciary. He was one of the few lawyers who openly opposed Mahathir's sacking of Salleh Abas, the then Lord President of the Supreme Court.

    He played a critical role in defending the judiciary in general, and Salleh Abas in particular, at that time. Many prominent lawyers including justice Eusoffe Abdoolcader commended Matthias for the stand he took". read more here,In defence of Matthias Chang http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/128242

    Anyway Matthias Chang the fearless lawyer has made his point loud and clear and I hope that he will pay the fine and get out of prison and stop the hunger strike which does him nothing good and to continue his pursuit of justice a free man outside prison.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous12:37 pm

    Mathais Chang needs a hair cut lah.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous12:57 pm

    Ours aren't the 9th least corrupted country. The survey is based on PERCEIVED judicial corruption and must not to be confused with Corruption Perception Index.

    Nona K.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Matthias did not support Dr. Mahathir on his action against the Lord President. According to Stephen Chang:
    "Rozario where have you been? You should get your facts correct before you comment on matters of which you are ignorant and on Matthias. It is on record and public knowledge that Matthias opposed Mahathir's interference with the judiciary. He was one of the few lawyers who openly opposed Mahathir's sacking of Salleh Abas, the than Lord President of the Supreme Court of Malaysia. He played a critical role in defending the judiciary in general and Salleh Abas in particular at that time. Many prominent lawyers including Justice Eusoffe Abdoolcader commended Matthias for the stand he took. So, Mr Rozario, please get your facts right if you wish to be seen as an objective opinion writer and not a gutter journalist spreading lies to defame. For Rozario to describe the judge who committed Matthias to jail as "brave" shows a total lack of objectivity and a perverted mindset who is bent on discrediting Matthias."

    ReplyDelete
  5. nstman1:16 pm

    Rocky has taken spinning into a new stratosphere. He says Malaysian judiciary is one of the least corrupt. Is it a sick joke? Pse dont make the whole country laugh. By the way, Rocky is doing an excellent job as Najib's No 1 spokesman . I wont be surprised if he takes over from Ahmad A. Talib, the bumbling fool who is always in a daze, as Media Prime boss. Keep it up Rocky. Cheers, see u at our press club.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Perwira Perkasa1:50 pm

    Terus terang gua cakap la.... gua not interested.

    Mahathir dulu memanipulasikan sistem kehakiman negara hingga menjadi sebuah pasar jual-beli keadilan. Yang kuat dan berpengaruh boleh membeli keadilan & lawan2 mereka di-ISAkan dan dirembat masuk ke lokap.

    Skang gua nak tengok apa si Mahathir nak buat.

    Sekarang baru dia terasa.

    Satu lagi yg gua nak tengok Mahathir merayu dan bertempur mati-matian kalu satu hari nanti dia disumbat dlm penjara pasal angkara dan pecah amanahnya hingga seratus bilion ringgit seperti yg tersebut dalam buku Barry Wain yg bertajuk Malaysian Maverick.

    Buku ni pun kerajaan tak mo rakyat baca.

    Bila Pakatan Rakyat bentuk kerajaan masa tulah pelesit yg menyeleweng wang rakyat macam si Mahathir ni akan terperangkap.

    Selagi BN menguasai kerajaan Persekutuan selagi itu Mahathir bebas. Sebab kalu Mahathir dibawa menghadap mahkamah, maka pecah tembelang rasuah segala-gala menteri dalam kabinet dan bekas menteri-menteri UMNO dan org2 atasan dan penting yg lain. Takkan golongan ni nak duk diam diam. Dah tentu mereka berjuang habis habisan agar BN tak tumbang.

    Selagi tu Mahathir duk senang lenang.

    Kes video Lingam yg melibatkan Mahathir pun kerajaan tak nak siasat, apo lagi nak di kato.

    Skang pepandai pulak si Mahathir nak memintak 'Justice utk Matthias' konon. Tergelak aku. Lawak sarkis tulen wa cakap....

    ReplyDelete
  7. Dato' Rocky,

    I really hope the wisdom of YAA Chief Justice prevail in this case.

    We have seen before so many times over how Opposition Leaders like Anwar "Mat King Leather" Ibrahim and Karpal Singh did all sorts of funny things and statements in snd outside the court, even to a point trying to 'recuse' the trial Judge. And yet, non of these 'contempt of court' were ever thrown against these people who tested and challenged to authority of the learned judges, sometimes in the most Kurang Ajar tone and manner.

    Why is that?

    Notice how non of the Opposition Leaders stood against the judgment on Matthias Chang. Neither did the Bar Council.

    Again, why is that too?

    I hope investigations are being carried out against Matthias Chang's claim on the defective charge that brought upon him being jailed for 30 days, now suffering in Kajang Prison to prove a point.

    You are right. The integrity of the Judge and credibility of the Judiciary is being tested in this case.

    We cannot afford to have anymore erosion of the public confidence on the Judiciary.

    ReplyDelete
  8. shukrie2:38 pm

    Rocky

    How come your list of Politician blogs is terbalik dan songsang?

    List yang lain semua tersusun rapi in alphabetical order from A to Z tapi yg satu ni jer tak betul, mula dari Z ke A pulak.

    Mintak perbetulkan Rocky. Senang kita readers nak rujuk, kalau tak berserabut rambut. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Then what was the issue when Anwar got screwed by the judiciary?

    This Matthias held the flag for Mahathir when the judiciary was being raped by him. When he installed slime balls like Eusoff Chin. When V.K. Lingam ruled the courts.

    So this Matthias has to taste a little of his own medicine. So what is he complaining about?

    And what are you complaining about?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous3:08 pm

    In relation to the Malaysiakini piece:

    Look at how the depraved Sons and Daughters of Bitches, Ramon, Ambiga and Mohd Tap strive to diss the report cos it gives MALAYsia a good name. Fuckhead and cuntlouses who have no better things to do in life but stir shit and who turn green faster than a chameleon ever could, if MALAYsia gets a good rating. These sons and daughters of bitches should be castarated and spayed in public and thrown into a dungeon for their treachery, arselicking twatwhores and cocksuckling fuckling.

    Perception Indices are just that, perceptions and those who live and die by them should have their heads examined or their cocks chopped off or cunts logshoved when things dont go according to their whims and fancies. Who are you noncompoop dogpoos to cast doubts just cos it doesnt fit in with your arseviews, stupid fellatists?

    After all Ramon, care to cast some light and transparency on Air Asia. What a bunch of titfucking and tit fucked morons in our midst.No surprises over the bad presses what with these imbecile and utterly useless and worthless pendatang scumbags and cocksuckling pseudo-malays hogging the public debate.

    Warrior 231

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous3:41 pm

    Don't throw stones when you live in glass house matthias that should have been your heading.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Malaysia is 9th least corrupted. What a spin here again.

    Hey fren, corruption is not confined to just excgange of money for favours....it may and would include corrupted acts, following orders of those that in the corridors of power, skewing the obvious decisions etc!!!!

    So simple minded as you had put forth; no wonder Malaysians do not trust UMNO bloggers

    ReplyDelete
  13. KR Nathan4:45 pm

    Not a miscarriage of justice, but rather Matthias should have not dispensed his theatrics like a little girl. He deserved what he got for pure rudeness.

    Yes, he was certainly in contempt of the court. You could still make your point of not having confidence, without being so bloody rude.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous5:09 pm

    What goes around comes around, are we surprised, hell NO,in Malaysia everything is Possible. Hey, its not that nice tasting one's own medicine I suppose. Matthias should have known better than to mess around with the Malaysian Judiciary or maybe he has forgotten that Mahathir is no more the Prime Minister, aiya I have no pity for this Matthias fella he thinks he is Untouchable.


    ziggy, NZ

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  15. Anonymous5:09 pm

    "By the way, ours is the 9th least corrupted judiciary in the world. Let's keep it that way."

    Aiseyy Bro Rocky,

    Are you implying that the judge is corrupted? You are certainly treading on dangerous ground, and could possibly be cited for contempt yourself. You should be more responsible with your statements.

    While I admit that I'm one of those who love our ex-PM, in this case I must differ. A judge is one of those people you dont insult or abuse. Whether you agree with his decision or not. Even our learned brother Mathias willingly surrendered himself to the courts to be jailed.

    There is a legal process for appeals and further appeals. Condemning the courts in blogs and the press isnt one of them.

    Cheers,
    MUS

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous5:21 pm

    oy. judge maybe in menses? becareful lah.

    anti-menstruator

    ReplyDelete
  17. Bro

    Matthisa Chang is not Tun Salleh Abbas for the CJ to intervene or call for an RCI nor is this case of such national importanace that normal case management should be dispensed with.

    As far as we are aware, the judge acted in line with the law as it stands and in accordance with precedence in M'sia. Even in the USA, it is the case judge who decides on contempt, as happened not so long ago there when a reporter was jailed for contempt for failing to reveal his source.

    I'm afraid that Dr.M sprang to Matthias' defence without taking a step back and considering that he had the M'sian Courts Appeals System to resort to. After all MC could have paid the fine and then taken it up on appeal. Instead he chose to make all sorts of allegations against the judge's conduct and expected to receive a pat on the back for it!

    Well, there's no dual legal rights or systems in M'sia for ex-aides of Prime Minister's or their croneys. That is as it should be!!


    dpp
    We are all of 1 race, the Human Race

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous6:55 pm

    I have been to court before, civil and syariah.. I noticed the judges are very Professional in their approaches..

    But I was not happy with the lawyers, both Syariah and Civil... they are ones who delay and twist around our very straight forward cases..

    On both cases, it was the the judges that saved our day..

    the lawyers? I personally feel they are ones that is making the system look so CHEAP!! It is so obvious they are all for the MONEY...

    Mau sue saya for saying the above?

    I have my own personal documentations to prove my claims and will gladly produce it to whoever interested!!

    PERWIRA

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous7:51 pm

    Rocky has taken spinning into a new stratosphere. He says Malaysian judiciary is one of the least corrupt.
    ===
    Least corrupted in where? In semenanjung Malaysia. LOL.

    Mathias Chang - someone give him a rope lah


    Mangkuk ayun

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous7:51 pm

    Like it or not, Matthias stood his principle. But it is a real wonder how others like PR leaders or other ruckus bearers seem to blatantly get away with worse cases of contempt. Are judges one sided, leaning towards the opposition or is contempt subject to the mood of the executer?

    Matthias could have done an 'Anwar' by requesting a recusal, but he chose to emulate part of Raja Petra's silly hunger strike.

    It is surprising too that he did not 'disappear' like some fugitives living in style abroad.

    Anyway, one month will pass by in a jiffy and others may continue to 'whack' judges through blogsphere or whatever means and of course, they will continue to walk away scot free.

    A GOOD MAN DOES NOTHING.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous9:56 pm

    now the courts are messed up for u? make up ur mind and stick to it

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous10:16 pm

    Hek Eleh DPP Macha, kejap kata hakim corrupt, kejap backing hakim plak. keling mmg keling jugak

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous10:18 pm

    the link you posted that to support your argument that the malaysian judiciary is the 9th least corrupted judiciary in the world is to a report written in 2007. In other words, it is somewhat outdated.

    http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2009/cpi_2009_table is the latest ranking. Malaysia ranks 56 out of 180 countries.

    so the comment "By the way, ours is the 9th least corrupted judiciary in the world. Let's keep it that way." is invalid because it uses outdated data. Furthermore, based on recent data, the call to keep our judiciary clean comes a little too late as we are already on a downward trend.

    sook

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous3:32 am

    Warrior 231,

    I don't understand what you are saying. Do you mind writing them in English please?

    Padawan 322

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous7:04 am

    kenapa majlis peguam malaysia senyap ni? selalu banyak keluarkan press statement pasal ni pasal tu tapi pasal member sendiri yang dia orang tak suka kot diam terus

    apa jadi jugak kat mr edmon bon yang banyak cakap pasal perlembagaan malaysia, protest sini protest sana, yang ni pun diam.

    lawyer malaysia banyaknya nampak memilih apa yang mereka hendak pejuangkan terutama sekali perkara yang akan memihak dengan setengah pihak saja. ini la sikap kononya orang terpelajar

    khuatir

    ReplyDelete
  26. Md K M8:52 am

    At last! A correct decision by a Malaysian judge! In fact, I think the judgment should have been much harsher! Whatever it is, the rather fair judgment certainly helps in slightly heightening the low reputation of the Malaysian judiciary, which has sunk to unbelievable depths during the reign of Mahathir, and did not significantly improve during Badawi's reign. I truly hope that there are more decisions like this in the future.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous9:13 am

    One should not harp or be satisfied with a ranking of 9th position as the world's least corrupt judiciary!Honest people can be jailed or hanged and big time criminals can make their days!
    [Surprised]

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anak Permatang Pauh9:19 am

    The confused Nona K. argues:
    "The survey is based on PERCEIVED judicial corruption and must not to be confused with Corruption Perception Index."

    No one else is confused about the two, except you, dear Nona. What's your problem madam? Like many of the chungkies living in this blessed land, you get irritated seeing and hearing anything positive about this country.

    Learn to think positively, and you'll live a better and a more meaningful life in this Malay-first Land. Remember why this country is named MALAYsia, because this country is Tanah MELAYU, get it?

    ReplyDelete
  29. Dear Dato' Rocky,

    The article dated 25th May 2007... perhaps the rank has getting better (or worse).

    ReplyDelete
  30. Anonymous10:20 am

    Rocky,

    Malaysia is now ranked 47 under Najibs administration....(corruption perception index)

    http://www.transparency.org/publications/gcr/gcr_2009#6.3

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous10:24 am

    Rocky who does not do his homework:

    ***Malaysia***
    "The complexity of the relationships between
    politics and the public and private sectors means
    that corruption may take place with impunity.
    Under the circumstances, therefore, the
    practice of revolving and rotating doors and
    active government participation in the economy
    creates an appearance of impropriety, and, with
    the weak oversight of public–private relationships,
    increases corruption risks. Until drastic
    action is taken to separate the cosy relationship
    between government, business and politics, the
    anti-corruption effort will remain no more than
    a token gesture."

    Gregore Pio Lopez and TI Malaysia

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous11:18 am

    Roc!
    Kharma at its best ! Matthias now know what its like!
    On the judiciary ,we beg to differ.Corruption is corruption even if you have half baked judges?Compredo!

    Kharma

    ReplyDelete
  33. skilgannon10663:40 pm

    Pak Rocky

    9th least corrupted judiciary? Read the fine print, Sir - this was a TI assessment done in 2007.

    For a more recent assessment, check the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index 2009-2010, where Malaysia is ranked 24th (down from 21st in 2008-2009).

    And on the matter of Institutions, Malaysia is ranked 43rd out of 133 economies surveyed. In the Judicial Independence category, which is part of Institutions, Malaysia is ranked 53rd out of 133 economies.

    Everybody's favourite bete-noire, Singapore, is ranked 3rd in the same survey (up from 5th in 2008-2009). In Institutions, Singapore is ranked 1st out of 133, and for Judicial Independence, it is (surprise, surprise) ranked 19th out of 133.

    19th vs 53rd in the matter of Judicial Independence, as per the GCI 2009-2010. Not much of competition there, is they?

    Doubters and naysayers can go to the WEF website and download the GCI report to peruse in detail. Let's see if they can fault the methodology used to compile the Index.

    Of course, Perkasa and those with a similar mindset wouldn't touch this topic with a ten-foot pole for fear of being shown up as economic ignoramuses (or, dare I say, imbeciles?).

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous4:57 pm

    There is no issue here, as far as the judge was concerned,Matthias was in contempt of the court and was sentence. Matthias wants to go to jail in lieu of paying fine, it is his choice. There have many you were under ISA who did not have any say at all.

    Abil Pillay

    ReplyDelete
  35. Anonymous10:43 pm

    Who want to invest for long term in Malaysia? The legal system and judiciary are in question. It is better to be in and out of Bursa making fast money. It is better to money out of thin air than making things.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Anonymous11:11 pm

    Pak Rocky

    9th least corrupted judiciary? Read the fine print, Sir - this was a TI assessment done in 2007.
    =======

    aiyoh nowaday rocky very busy.. you must excuse him for not proof reading everything his assistant thows into the laman web mah.

    Syiok-sendiri guy

    ReplyDelete
  37. Anonymous8:02 am

    Looks like someone with a perverted addiction for indices, rankings, perceptions whatever is unashamedly back to spout more inane garbage , a week or so after being pwned bigtime into utter speechlessness by his countryman.And the shameless gall of not even managing a decent response yet having the gumption to slither in here to post more garbage.No honour, no pride and no selfrespect indeed!!

    Also exactly a month or so after the IMF chap, hishamh etc showed him up to be a pompous condescending moron. And of course, after having had his mickey taken out here umpteen times by Warrior 231, Anti Whatever, SatD etc.

    Makes you smile at the knowledge that trueblue idiots will remain just as they are - true blue idiots but then again the world needs its idiots to provide life with some laughs or it would be a boring existence indeed.

    Wonder why folks from the indice paradise are leaving in droves for backwaters (in their own words) like New Zealand. Got to scratch our arses to figure that out.


    Dick Turpin

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous7:31 pm

    Bingo Turpin, pretty observant of yah to pick out the crackpots here which invariably have chingkie prostitute blood fowing in their veins. poor sods .....ooops SOBS.

    anyway, spotted this on under commodity data (table 6) accessible here:

    http://www.fas.usda.gov/oilseeds/circular/Current.htm

    malaysia is no 2, spore nowhere in sight.

    Lets begin comparing elephants and donkeys next and equatorial Guine's per capita income of 60k with US's 44k....hahahahahaha
    how moronic people can get when they clutch at their old whore's panties.stupid fellatists!

    Warrior 231

    ReplyDelete
  39. skilgannon10664:31 pm

    Warrior xxx

    Why didn't u mention also that Singapore is the 3rd largest oil refining and oil trading centre in the world? A little detail like that slipped past your mighty intellect, eh?

    Why didn't u mention that the big Middle East state-owned oil companies have significant trading operations in Singapore? Example - ENOC (Emirates National Oil Co). And, if I am not wrong, Petronas also does a sizeable amount of oil trading through Singapore.

    Be that as it may, my post was about the comment that Malaysia has the 9th least corrupted judiciary. That wasn't my comment.

    If u want to refute the Global Competitiveness Index methodology, then post your arguments for all to see. And if u have strong views about Malaysia's international competitiveness ranking vis-a-vis other countries, let's hear them. At least, the PM and the NEAC seem to have recognised that Malaysia has problems with it's competitiveness.

    Unless, of course, u are of the view that the PM is misguided and that the NEAC are a bunch of morons.

    ReplyDelete
  40. skilgannon10664:48 pm

    What were some of the key points the PM made in his speech at the Foreign Correspondents' Association dinner in Singapore?

    - that Malaysia will most probably return to the international bond market by floating a global bond in US Dollars. This will give an insight into how the market rates the country.

    Read that again: HOW THE MARKET RATES THE COUNTRY. So much for the idiots who blissfully claim that Malaysia is somehow insulated from "brutal competition".

    And with reports that Russia is planning to sell global bonds worth US$3-5 billion within the April-May timeframe and commodities-rich Brazil also planning to sell global bonds soon, one wonder how the market will rate Malaysia.

    - with regard to oil subsidies, the PM said that Malaysia is probably the country with the most generous subsidies in the world and that this cannot be sustained. He mentioned that direct and indirect subsidies in Malaysia "are to the tune of RM73 billion a year...That's an awful lot of money, and it has distorted the allocation of resources...We cannot be competitive until we move towards more market-level prices".

    The PM said RM73 billion a year in direct and indirect subsidies. Did he get his figures wrong, or was he mis-reported? I didn't see any spin doctors rushing to clarify what he said in his speech.

    U wanna ask the geniuses at Perkasa for their views on Malaysia returning to the international bond market? No doubt they will want to claim 67 per cent of the proceeds from any global bond sale......

    ReplyDelete
  41. skilgannon10665:03 pm

    Since some bright spark has touched on migration statistics, let me bring up the figures for Malaysia.

    According to a recent parliamentary report, 140,000 people left Malaysia, probably for good, in 2007.

    Recently, Wisma Putra released figures showing that from March 2008 to September 2009, a total of 300,000 Malaysians migrated to other countries. Of that, 200,000 left within the eight months of January-August 2009.

    Some analysts are of the opinion that, cumulatively, 2 million Malaysians have migrated. By a strange coincidence, that's pretty close to the number of Indonesian workers (legal and illegal) in Malaysia today.

    Now, what were the migration figures for Singapore again?

    And I note that the person who posted from Singapore and who tried to rebut my views conveniently omitted to post just how many foreigners have been given PR status in Singapore. It can easily be Googled. Why overlook this salient fact when posting about Singaporeans migrating?

    ReplyDelete
  42. Salam Datuk,

    skilgannon1066

    How not to agree with you? If these instituitions do not give this country under our feet favourable ratings, I myself will urge Harry LKY to sue the daylights out of them with the full force of his independent judiciary.

    Don't believe me? Ask Joshua Jeyaratnam.

    Freddie

    ReplyDelete
  43. Anonymous10:04 am

    Many miss the point. Our disgust with Mahathir and Matthias's blind support of the 'evil one' is behind the enmity that is shown to him.
    However, justice is the right of every Malaysian even someone as screwed up as Matthias. There is much disquiet over the behaviour of certain judges and the Chief Justice would do well for the overall image of the judiciary to bring these judges to task.
    There are however many forms of corruption and material gain is only one of them. The desire for power or to be close to the rich and powerful is no less insidious. Matthias has alienated many right thinking Malaysians in his blind loyalty to people who have destroyed and subverted key instituitions and values of this country including the due process of the law.
    Matthias's antics to many seem more to do with grandstanding rather than solving the problem of errant judges. It may unfortunately lead to a closing of ranks and a defence of the errant judge. While sad, it therefore not surprising there is very little sympathy for poor Matthias as the public in general have forgotten his past exploits- his vigorous protest against the sacking of Tun Salleh Abas and his early opposition to Mahathir.
    All we remember is a brilliant twisted mind that is bent on convincing us that Mahathir's rule of iron, political expediency at the expense of what is decent and good and previously unseen levels of corruption should NOT be consigned to dustbin of history.
    MM2H

    ReplyDelete